Exposed liner construction



EXPOSED LINER CONSTRUCTION Filed Jan. 24, 1941 old 46 4/ 49 5M5 48 5 42 5 um Z 12 i 3 /0 A Z f A 5" Z? n 1 2 if i /5 48 '1" 55 i5? '0 2 m z. P057542,

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Patented Dec. 15, 1942 EXPOSED LINER CON STBUCTION Ralph L. Foster, Houston, Tex., assignor to Emsco Derrick & Equipment Company, Los Angeles, Calif., a corporation or California Application January 24, 1941, Serial no. 375,759

'7 Claims.

My invention relates to a cylinder and liner construction for use in pumps and/or engines, and relates in particular to an arrangement wherein an intermediate portion of the liner is exposed to the exterior and the ends of the liner are in sealed communication with spaced working chambers.

Although the invention has utility with various types of devices wherein a, piston operates within a cylinder, it is of special utility with pumps employed for the pumping of liquids containing solid or abrasive substances, and for the purpose of briefly disclosing the invention without limiting its use, I shall herein explain the invention with relation to the fluid or working end of a power driven mud pump of double acting type, used in the rotary system of deep well drilling. Pumps of this character have a cylinder in which a piston is operated by means of a piston rod and the ends of the cylinder are connected to pumping or working chambers, each of which chambers has associated therewith a suction valve and a discharge valve, so that as the piston is reciprocated fluid will alternately be drawn into and discharged from the working chambers at the ends of the cylinders. In view of the fact that the material pumped, for example drilling mud, is of an abrasive character, the wear on the cylinder wall is ordinarily quite severe and it has become a practice to provide for the cylinder a replaceable steel liner which is secured in the portion of the liner extending through a space in open communication with the exterior of the structure so that leakage of fluid past either of the sealing means to the ends of the liner may be observed, thereby avoiding extended operation of the device through a period of time wherein there is aleakage of fluid around the exterior of the liner, as often occurs in pumps of the type now extensively employed in the well-drilling industry.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a cylinder and liner construction of the character set forth herein, wherein the liner may be readily placed and replaced and effective sealing of the end portions of the liner may be accomplished. a

A further object of the invention is to provide a structure of the character set forth in the foregoing wherein a replaceable liner is moved into and out of operative position between spaced working chambers, with the intermediate portion of the liner exposed to the exterior, without disturbing the spaced relation of the working chambers and without the necessity of dismantling the pump structure as is necessary in replacing the liner disclosed in Patent No. 1,513,584 to Cornwall.

It is a further object of the invention to pro-. vide a device of thecharacter set forth in the foregoing paragraph wherein the sealing means for sealing around the end portions of the liner are actuated through axial movement of the liner, and wherein simple means for producing the necessary axial movement of the liner is provided.

.It is a further object of the invention to provide a cylinder and liner construction wherein a liner having collars near the ends thereof is extended between spaced hollow bodies forming spaced working chambers and wherein sealing means for sealing around the end portions oi the liner are disposed between the collars and the walls of the hollow bodies.

An important advantage of the invention is that the liner, being packed off at both ends thereof, avoids possibility of the liner being locked in the pump due to sand packing between the liner and the enclosing wall of the pump in which the liner is ordinarily disposed. This packing of sand around the ordinary liner often.

makes it necessary to employ liner pullers and sometimes it has been found necessary to cut out tion will be brought out in the following part of the specification.

Referring to the drawing which is for illustrative purposes only:

Fig. l.is an elevational view of a mud pump embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged cross section taken as indicated by the line 2 2 of Fig. 1.

The pump shown in Fig. 1 has a power end HI and a pumping end ll, power for actuating pistons l2, Fig. 2, being transmitted from the power end II to the pistons l2 by means of connecting rods l3 which pass through packing devices ll.

The working section II of the pump is built symmetrically on opposite sides of the central vertical plane AA, Fig. 2, and each section comprises a pair of hollow bodies i 5 and I8 which form working chambers l1 and I8. These hollow bodies l5 and I 6 each have a valve pot l9 disposed on a vertical axis, and in each of these valve pots l9 there is an intake valve which is disposed in the lower parts of the valve pot, and in the upper part of each valve pct 19 there is a discharge valve which is not shown for the reason that the valve employed in the practice of the invention may be any of those well known to the art.

The hollow bodies l5 are rigidlyconnected to the hollow bodies l6 by fluid intake and fluid discharge members 2| and 22 which connect respectively to the lower and upper ends of the valve pot. The intake means 2| comprises tubular members 23 and 24 which are respectively welded to the lower ends of the valve pots IQ of the hollow bodies l5 and i6. These intake passage members 23 and 24 are likewise connected to a flange 25 to which intake piping 26 may be connected as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. The discharge passage members 22 are welded to the upper portions of the valve pots IQ of the hollow bodies I5 and I6 and connect the same with a discharge fitting 21 which carries a surge chamber 28 and to which the discharge piping of a fluid system 30 may be connected, as shown in Fig. l. 1

The hollow bodies l5 and I6 are disposed in spaced relation, and the adjacent walls 3| and 32 of the hollow bodies l5 and it are accordingly separated by an open space 33 which is in open communication with the exterior of the structure II. The adjacent walls 3! and 32 of the hollow bodies I5 and it are provided with aligned liner openings 34 and 35 to receive the end portions'of replaceable liners 36 in which the the liner 36 is sealed off at both ends and arrangement is made whereby the effectiveness of the sealing means may be periodically observed. Should leakage occur around either of the sealing rings 4| or 45, such leakage can be readily observed in the ample space 33 between the hollow bodies l5 and I6, and steps can be taken to correct the fault so that continued leakage will not result in the cutting away or channelling of the pump structure around the external face portions of the liner. Likewise, an additional feature of my invention is that the liners 36 may be placed and replaced with facility, and without the necessity of dismantling the unitary structure comprising the working unit H. When a liner 36 has become worn, the cover plate 31 lying adjacent the front or leftward end thereof may be removed and the liner may be taken out through the associated liner access opening 38.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a pump structure of the character described, the combination of: a hollow rigidly formed body structure having a pair of spaced working chambers, with the juxtaposed respective inner walls thereof separated by a space which is open to the exterior of said hollow body structure, said inner walls having aligned liner openings therein, and at least one of said working chambers having a removable wall to provide a liner access opening, each of said Working chambers having an intake valve pot and an outlet valve pot, and said body structure compistons l2 are operative. The hollow bodies l5 are provided with removable wall members, or cover plates 31, which normally close liner access ports or openings 33 in the front walls of the hollow bodies l5 and of such diameter that the liners 36 may be passed therethrough when the cover 'plates 37 are removed.

Each liner 36 has near its inner or rightward end a collar or shoulder 40 adapted to compress a ring of packing material against a shoulder 42 in the opening 35 of the wall 32. The leftward or outerend of each liner 36 has thereon a cylindric enlargement 43 and an annular collar or shoulder 44 adapted to compress an annular packing member 45 against an annular shoulder 46 in the opening 34 of the wall 3|.

Rightward axial movement of the liners 36 moves the shoulders 40 and 45 in rightward direction so as to compress the packing rings 4| and 45 against the shoulders 42 and 46. In order to impart the required rightward axial movement to the liners 36, I provide in each cover plate 31 a heavy screw 48 to exert pressure against a cage 49 of open work construction, and which is disposed in engagement with the leftward end of a liner 36, as shown in Fig. 2.

It will be perceived that in my simplified construction, the working chambers are formed in separate hollow bodies which are connected toprising a bifurcated intake pipe for connecting said intake valve pots with a fluid supply conduit and a bifurcated outlet pipe for connecting said outlet valve pots with a fluid discharge conduit, at least one of said pipes being disposed proximately adjacent said liner openings and directly bridging said inner walls across said space for holding said inner walls rigidly related, with said liner openings in fixed alignment; a liner insertable through said liner access opening to a position wherein the ends thereof will communicate with said chambers through said liner openings of said inner walls and said liner will be exposed to the exterior of said hollow body structure; and sealing means around said liner to resist leakage of fluid through said liner openings and around the exterior of the end portions of said liner into said open space.

2. In a pump structure of the character described, the combination of: a hollow rigidly formed body structure having a pair of spaced working chambers, with the juxtaposed respective inner walls thereof separated by a space which is open to the exterior of said hollow body structure, said inner walls having aligned liner openings therein, and at least one of said working chambers having a removable wall to provide a liner access opening, each of said working chambers having an intake valve pot and an outlet valve pot coaxial with said intake valve pot, the axes of said intake and outlet valve pots being perpendicular to the direction of, and adjacently displaced from the axis of said openings, and said body structure comprising a bifurcated intake pipe for connecting said intake valve pots with a fluid supply conduit and a bifurcated outlet pipe for connecting said outlet valve pots with a fluid discharge conduit, at least one of said pipes being disposed proximately adjacent said liner openings and directly bridging said inner walls across said space for holding said inner walls rigidly related, with said liner openings in fixed alignment; a liner insertable through said liner access opening to a position wherein the ends thereof will communicate with said 7 chambers through said liner openings of said inscribed, the combination of: a hollow rigidly formed body structure comprising two rigidly joined symmetrically related substantially duplicate sections, each section having a pair of spaced working chambers, with the juxtaposed respec-' tive inner walls thereof separated by a space which is open to the exterior of said hollow body structure, said inner walls having aligned liner openings therein, and at least one of said working chambers having a removable wall to provide a liner access opening, each of said working chambers having an intake valve pot and an outlet valve pot coaxial with said intake valve pot, the axes of said intake and outlet valve pots being perpendicular to the direction of, and outwardly and adjacently displaced from the axis of said openings and parallel to the axes of the valve pots of the other section, and each said section comprising a bifurcated intake pipe for connecting said intake valve pots with a fluid supply conduit and a bifurcated outlet pipe for connecting said outlet valve pots with a fluid discharge conduit, at least one of said pipes being disposed proximately adjacent said liner openings and directly bridging said inner walls across said space for holding said inner walls rigidly related, with said liner openings in fixed alignment; a liner insertable through each of said liner access openings to a position wherein the ends thereof will communicate with said chambers through said liner openings of said inner walls and said liner will be exposed to the exterior of said hollow body structure; and sealing means around each of said liners to resist leakage of fluid through said liner openings and around the exterior of the end portions of said liners into said open space.

4. In a pump structure of the character described, the combination of: a hollow rigidly formed body structure comprising two rigidly joined symmetrically related substantially duplicate sections, each section having a pair of spaced working chambers, with the juxtaposed respective inner walls thereof separated by a space which is open to the exterior of said hollow body structure, said inner walls having aligned-liner openings therein, and at least one of said working chambers having a removable wall to provide a liner access opening, each of said working chambers having an intake valve pot and an outlet valve pot coaxial with said intake valve pot, the axes of said intake and outlet valve pots being perpendicular to the direction of, and outwardly and adjacently displaced from the axis of said openings and parallel to the axes of the valve pots of the other section, and each said section comprising a bifurcated intake pipe for connecting said intake valve pots with a fluid supply conduit and a bifurcated outlet pipe for connecting said outlet valve pots with a fluid discharge conduit, at least one of said pipes being disposed proximately adjacent said liner openings and directly bridging said inner 'walls across said space for holding said inner walls rigidly related, with said liner openings in flxed alignment, said one of said bifurcated pipes of one section being rigidly connected to the corresponding bifurcated pipe of the other section by a pipe arranged transversely of the axes of said openings of said two sections for connecting said bifurcated pipes to the correspondingfluid conduit; a liner insertable through each of said liner access openings to a position wherein the ends thereof will communicate with said chambers through said liner openings of said inner walls and said liner will be exposed to the exterior of said hollow body structure; and sealing means around each of said liners to resist leakage of fluid through said liner openings and around the exterior of the end portions of said liners into said open space.

5. In a pump structure of the character described, the combination of: a pump housing comprising a pair of spaced working chambers with the inner walls of said chambers separated by a space which is exterior of either of said working" chambers, said inner walls having aligned liner openings therein, and at least one of said working chambers having a removable wall to provide a liner access opening aligned with said liner openings; a liner insertable through said liner access opening to a position wherein the ends thereof will communicate with said chambers through said liner openings of said inner walls and the external surface of said liner will be exposed to said space; sealing means between the ends of said liner and said juxtaposed walls of said bodies, said sealing means being so formed as to operate in response to axial movement of said liner in a direction away from said movable wall; an openwork strut frame in said one chamber between said liner and said removable wall and abutting said liner; and means on said removable wall and accessible from the exterior thereof for transmitting said axial movement through said frame to said liner.

6. In a pump structure of the character described, the combination of: a pump housing comprising a pair of spaced working chambers with the inner walls of said chambers separated by a space which is exterior of either of said working chambers, said inner walls having aligned liner openings therein, and at least one walls of said bodies, said sealing means being so formed as to operate in response to axial movement of said liner in a direction away from said movable wall; a spider in said one chamber and spanning and abutting the adjacent end of said liner; and a screw means threadedly mounted in said movable wall and operatively accessible from the exterior of said removable wall for imparting axial movement in said direction to said spider.

'7. In a pump structure of the character described, the combination of: a pump housing comprising a pair.of spaced working chambers with the inner walls of said chambers separated by a space which is exterior of either of said working chambers, said inner walls having aligned-liner openings therein, and at least one of said working chambers having a removable wall to provide a liner access opening aligned with said liner openings; a liner insertable through said liner access opening to a position wherein the ends thereof will communicate with said chambers through said liners openings of said inner walls and the external surface of said liner'wiil be exposed to said space, said liner having shoulders near the ends thereof, facing away from said removable wall; sealing means between said shoulders and said adjacent walls of m said working chambers, and being operable in response to axial movement of said liner in a direction away from said removable wall; an openwork strut frame in said one chamber between said liner and said removable wall and abutting said liner; and means on said removable wall and accessible from the exterior thereof for transmitting said axial movement through said frame to said liner.

RALPH L. FOSTER. 

